


Anakin Skywalker works to become better (Real Life AU)

by Citrus_Orange



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Anakin Skywalker Needs a Hug, Fluff and Angst, Human Disaster Anakin Skywalker, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, It Gets Worse Before It Gets Better, Other, Rehabilitation, Sad with a Happy Ending, Teacher Obi-Wan Kenobi, more to be added - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-01
Updated: 2020-01-02
Packaged: 2021-02-27 04:49:12
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,348
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22071316
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Citrus_Orange/pseuds/Citrus_Orange
Summary: ----regular life AU----Anakin is fresh out of rehab after leaving the ‘dark side’ which was just a bunch of druggies, his high school physics teacher, and now kind of his dad, Mr. Ben Kenobi, known to him as Obi Wan since he isn’t ready to call him dad and Ben is weird as hell, Is forcing him to start therapy and get a teaching degree. So that way he has an OK paying job. He’s now struggling with his identity and trying to finish online college and he’s feeling exhausted to be honest.My first fic on Ao3!!! Trying to do consistent updates but i'm a student so no promises
Relationships: Obi-Wan Kenobi & Anakin Skywalker, Padmé Amidala & Anakin Skywalker, Qui-Gon Jinn & Anakin Skywalker, Qui-Gon Jinn & Obi-Wan Kenobi
Comments: 4
Kudos: 21





	1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1, A fresh beginning and one very disappointed father figure  


“Anakin, Let’s go,” Obi Wan said to him firmly, you could almost hear the disappointment in his voice. Anakin felt like shit, to put it simply. He’s finally getting over his withdrawal from Ritalin and currently he just wants to go back to Obi Wan’s house and sleep in the bed that Obi Wan swears is his. Then pass out for at least 8 hours.  
But instead he was going to have a “talk” with Obi which is going to end up with him crying and Obi Wan feeling guilty and thinking that Anakin’s past addiction is his fault because he couldn’t save him from his fall from light. Anakin hates this. He hates that he even got addicted. He most of all hates that Obi Wan still cares about him even after how shitty he treated Obi Wan while he was in rehab, especially since his first few days of withdrawal, those were the worst days. He still feels awful.  


“Obi?” He said, timidly feeling his mouth start to salivate, “Can you pull over? I’m gonna vomit.” His voice was trembling, Obi Wan swore while pulling over. As the car stops at the side of the intersection, he instantly throws open the car door and starts vomiting up what little food he had eaten that day, and just like the saint he is, Obi Wan swipes back his bangs and rubs his back. This was probably one of the things that the pamphlet that he had given Obi Wan from the rehab center that would describe what recovery and withdrawal would be like. Hiccuping and shaking he wipes his mouth off. He leans back into the car, barely hearing Obi Wan ask if he’s feeling ok enough to continue the drive home. Anakin nods as his breathing starts to slow. The drive to Obi Wan’s house is silent after he vomits, it's almost unsettling but Anakin is so tired he doesn’t even care anymore.  


Once he gets inside Obi Wan tells him to shower and then come back downstairs before rehab, Anakin would have argued that he just wants to go the hell to sleep Ben, that would’ve done it, starting a big fight like he always would and at this point he’s tired of Obi feeling like he fucked up. Tired of disappointing the one person who cares about him just because he can. Not because Anakin is smart, not because he’s good at math and science and can smooth talk or wriggle his way into any situation that he shouldn’t be in. He just cares about Anakin because he’s Anakin.  


The shower felt good, considering that he hasn’t showered since Wednesday and it's now Saturday, he had felt disgusting but the breakdown that he had was so bad that for several days he was just so sad that even getting up to sit in the living room with Obi Wan in the evenings was to much. College was becoming more and more stressful and he didn’t know how ask Obi Wan for help with his assignments, so he was just struggling, alone. After showering he contemplated just going to bed, anyway, ignoring Obi’s request to come back down. He decided that it was best to not upset him anymore for the night and thumped down the stairs.  


Sitting there at the table was not only Obi Wan, but there was also Obi Wan’s father (Anakin’s grandfather? Kind of?) Mr. Qui-Gon Jinn, who rivaled Obi in kindness and intelligence about math physics. There was also food, more specifically, pizza. He was going to have a talk with them no matter what, but at least he’d be eating something. A fun fact about Qui-Gon was that he always subbed for Obi Wan when Anakin was in high school, anytime Obi couldn’t teach, he’d come to class to see Qui-Gon. Who would great everyone walking in with a good morning and a smile.  


“Hey Anakin, how’re you feeling?” Qui-Gon asked smiling softly, he had always felt softer, he had always pushed people to be their best without being mean or harsh. “I’m doing OK” he responded, yawning, since he was exhausted. Being cleared from rehab for the final time was a relief and meant that he could get a job and help pay bills for Obi Wan. It was the least he could do, but Obi Wan had refused that he do anything other than college and hobbies until he was out of rehab. Stating that Anakin needed a break from the stress and busyness to just calm down and meditate.  


So, for those long 3 months, he worked on building a better laptop for Obi Wan and going around fixing technology whenever he could. Then also working on his basic credits required for college, he wasn’t sure about what he wanted as lasting job, so he was working on basic required credits for now, since he was only a freshman still. But after awhile he just feels trapped. Even though he could go anywhere he wanted to and do pretty much anything he felt like, he just felt trapped. But it gave him motivation to apply for jobs, so that was a plus. Talking with Obi Wan and Qui-Gon explained that they both were proud that he had gotten cleared. They wanted him to start thinking about his future, not dwell over the past or panic over the present. He was also told that there was a list of therapists that they both thought would be good for him to see, he was expected to make a call to one of them a try to set up an appointment. It would be good for him to talk to someone about everything that’s been going on in his life during that past 3 years. After eating, talking, and cleaning up the kitchen quickly, Anakin was told to go to bed. Even though he wasn’t a little kid, it felt nice to be told to do something. Maybe it was because he was so tired that processing whether this was a good time to sleep was difficult. Or maybe he just liked having a set task. Either way, he was glad to go the hell to sleep.


	2. Chapter 2, Job hunting and avoiding a needed long conversation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anakin applies for a job online and reflects on how he and Obi Wan get along, and how he even started rehab. Then depression hits and he passes out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, I know that Jabba The Hutt didn't give Anakin his scar in canon, but I feel that it works better for the story if he gives Anakin his scar.

The worst part of all of this, was that Anakin could feel Obi Wan trying to start a conversation about what had happened over the 3 months in rehab. He hated it because he didn’t want to talk about it and make him feel worse about how Anakin’s life had spiraled down into a pit, a pit that Obi Wan had forced him out of. Obi Wan had forced Anakin to go to rehab, which in turned caused Anakin to feel like he had let him down. But rehab was a good thing, it meant that Anakin would get better, start looking forward into what he wants for a future, and it meant that he would finally start talking to Obi Wan about his problems. At least that had been the original goal. It hadn’t ended up working out nearly the way Anakin had hoped for, it caused fights and shouting matches that ended with both crying but no real solution as an outcome.

When he had come downstairs the next morning, he saw Obi Wan and Qui-Gon. The two were chatting casually while drinking tea. When they noticed that Anakin had come downstairs, they immediately asked him if he wanted anything to drink. More specifically Obi Wan offered him some tea, _Earl Gray_ Anakin thought bitterly. He hated the taste of almost all teas, the only good tea in his mind was half and half Arizona Iced Tea, Obi Wan always said that it wasn’t real tea according to his standards. So, Anakin politely declined, knowing that in all honesty, Obi Wan was offering knowing that he’d decline.

That was something that boggled Anakin’s mind sometimes, the fact that Obi Wan would do small actions for Anakin just because. Not because Anakin had done something good or interesting, or because it was a special occasion. Just because Obi Wan felt like it’s what he needed to hear, whether it’d be him asking about Anakin’s day or telling Anakin that he was grabbing groceries that they had needed for dinner that they hadn’t had and picking up a candy or snack food that he knew Anakin enjoyed or even just offering him choices so that way Anakin felt like he had a little control over his life. It made Anakin feel like he was wanted and that he was an important person within Obi Wan’s life.

Qui-Gon Jinn said his goodbyes and headed home, saying that he had _“a lot of paperwork to finish up”_ because even though he wasn’t teaching his own classes anymore he still did work on the school districts board and substituted for classes whenever needed. So, he knew Anakin before Obi Wan had started standing in as a parental figure, just because he subbed for several classes that Anakin was taking during his 4 years of high school. So, when he came over and hugged Anakin before leaving back to his home, it had shocked Anakin for a second. Qui-Gon barely knew Anakin as a person yet was welcoming him as a family member. It felt nice, Anakin was willing to admit it, but it was strange since his family was still alive. At least, his mother still lived in the awful tenant housing in the city dating on and off her landlord who basically trapped them both there before Anakin started staying with Obi Wan.

Hutt, as he was called by most younger people living there, was an alcoholic who owned the building his mother lived in and treated the people living there like he owned them just because it was all that they could afford. Hutt had given Anakin the scar on his face by throwing a glass bottle at him during his sophomore year which had caught the attention of Qui-Gon, who was subbing for Obi Wan that morning when he had come in with gauze taped to his head in an attempt to cover up the bleeding and help it start to clot. Qui-Gon told Obi Wan who had expressed concerns about Anakin earlier that year, and Anakin and Obi Wan came to an agreement. Anakin would get help and spend afternoons with Obi Wan to keep him away from Hutt until his mom was done with work at 7pm, they had come to this agreement because Anakin didn’t want to be legally separated from his mother, he had begged Obi Wan to not say anything because it would cause more trouble for Anakin and his mom. Eventually, he agreed just so that way he could look out for Anakin.

Soon enough, it was just him and Obi Wan in the kitchen sitting at the table in silence. Obi Wan drinking his tea while grading lab reports from his students, occasionally sliding one to Anakin so that way he’d get a second opinion on how the student should be graded. It was a welcomed calm silence, the kind that never happened often. As Anakin scrolled through the jobs hiring 19-year-old college students looking for one that would allow him to still be able to be home during evenings when Obi Wan was home but still give him good hours. Obi Wan glanced up at him, seeming like he was debating on starting a conversation that would leave both upset and understanding. Anakin knew that look because it always happened a couple minuets before they would have a conversation or fight about something that one of them was doing or feeling.

“I think Best Buy would be a good day job,” Anakin started trying to avoid a talk with Obi Wan, “its hiring daytime all positions.” Obi Wan’s mood seemed to lighten at him bringing up a job that Anakin sounded comfortable with. He always told Anakin that a good job would be one that made him happy, or at least kept him busy in a good way. That’s apparently why Obi Wan chose teaching physics as his job, because he liked doing math like that and physics had you doing a lot of math with formulas and rules. It was Obi’s kind of work, so he went to college and majored in a teaching degree and minored in sciences, specifically math sciences.

He and Obi Wan talked over the course of an hour on and off about whether or not the job would be a good one to apply for, since Obi Wan didn’t want Anakin’s first job after rehab to be too stressful that Anakin would spiral into a depressive pit and not be able to climb out. He always worried about Anakin’s mental health after Anakin started going to rehab, since he had been pressured to start drugs by a drug lord who went by Palpatine, who told Anakin that it would take the edge off his senior year stress and overpowering depression. After about 8 months of addiction, Obi Wan broke down and yelled at Anakin that he was either going to rehab or he would call the police on him and get him arrested for drug possession. So, he went to rehab, cut all contact with Palpatine and the other druggies who worked with or did work for him in exchange for drugs.

The conversation concluded with Anakin applying online for a position at Best Buy and Obi Wan needing to stop at the high school quick to grab papers that he left that still needed to be graded. As Obi Wan went outside to his car Anakin watched, feeling more exhausted than before. He’s slowly starting to want to have a conversation about what happened with Obi, but his depression was guilt tripping him and causing his extreme exhaustion so he curled up on the couch, as YouTube went on in the background on the TV playing videos about perks of meditation and how to properly meditate.


End file.
